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For more than a decade, state and local governments have steadily expanded laws aimed at protecting workers from wage theft, according to newly published data on LawAtlas.org and analysis in the American Journal of Public Health. The findings point to a growing patchwork of local action designed to address gaps in federal wage enforcement.
Wage theft — defined as an employer failing to pay legally owed wages or benefits — disproportionately affects women, people of color, and immigrant workers. While federal protections exist, enforcement challenges have pushed cities and states to adopt their own regulatory approaches.
Local Governments Drive Policy Innovation
The data show that cities have emerged as the primary laboratories for anti–wage theft policy. Between January 1, 2010, and April 15, 2023, the number of cities with wage theft laws tripled. These laws often go beyond basic minimum wage enforcement, introducing mechanisms that increase accountability and lower barriers for workers seeking restitution.
Local measures increasingly include nontraditional enforcement tools such as business license penalties, expanded employer education requirements, third-party complaint systems, and investigative models that shift the burden of proof toward employers.
New Datasets Map a Decade of Legal Change
The research is based on four new datasets developed by Temple University Beasley School of Law, covering wage-related laws in the 40 largest U.S. cities and the 25 states in which they are located. The datasets track legal provisions governing minimum wage, overtime, and promised wages from 2010 through early 2023.
They also capture whether laws impose monetary or non-monetary penalties, require employer recordkeeping or wage disclosures, and include protections against retaliation — key factors in determining how enforceable worker protections are in practice.
Stronger Enforcement Tools Gain Ground
Several notable enforcement trends emerge from the data. Ten of the 40 largest cities now authorize revocation of business-related licenses when employers fail to pay required wages, up from just one city in 2010. At the state level, only Massachusetts has enacted a comparable provision.
Mandatory monetary penalties tied directly to worker compensation are also becoming more common. Eleven major cities now require employers to pay financial penalties to workers for minimum wage violations, calculated either as a percentage of unpaid wages or as daily fines.
Educational requirements are another area where cities outpace states. Nine cities mandate outreach or education for workers and employers on wage rights and obligations, compared with just one state — Texas — with a similar provision.
Limited State Preemption Leaves Room for Local Action
Despite the expansion of local wage theft laws, state preemption remains relatively rare. As of April 2023, only four of the 40 largest cities were barred from enacting local wage theft protections, leaving most municipalities free to design their own enforcement frameworks.
Filling Federal Enforcement Gaps
Taken together, the findings suggest that state and local governments are increasingly stepping in where federal wage enforcement has struggled to keep pace. By mapping these laws in detail, the datasets offer researchers and policymakers a clearer view of how different legal strategies may affect worker protections, employer compliance, and long-term outcomes.
